Laboratory work

Task 1.1a. You will heara womanreading a piece of information about London cab drivers. The text is called “The Knowledge”. Listen to the text carefully and put it down.

Task 1.1b. Say what style and what type of this style the reading of the passage represents.

Task 1.2. Listen to the piece of information again and intone the text. Notice all the informational style peculiarities of the prosodic features as they are displayed in the text. Say what accounts for the use of these prosodic features.

Task 1.3. Now practice the text aloud using the proper intonation.

Task 1.4a. Find some interesting educational information. Choose a passage for oral representation. Mark the prosodic features of the text:

- for this divide the text into paragraphs if possible;

- split up sentences into intonation groups/tone units;

- find the communicative centre and the nuclear word of each intonation group, underline them;

- mark the stresses and tunes;

- indicate pauses and tempo.

Task 1.4b. Read the passage in class. Try to keep the listeners’ interest but do not involve your personal attitude towards the information introduced.

Task 1.4c. Learn thefacts and tell the information from your memory to your groupmates.

Task 2.1. Listen carefully to a few broadcast news items (The Eight O’clock News). Compare the prosodic features of reading the news with those of reading the educational text in task 1.1.

Task 2.2. Listen to the pieces of news again. Choose one item for reading aloud. Intone the piece and then practice reading each sentence repeating after the speaker.

Task 2.3. Read the news aloud in class as if you were a radio announcer. Bear in mind the absence of visual contact between the radio announcer and the listeners.

Task 3.1. Listen to this item from a broadcast news bulletin. It reports events in Barcelona, where England have been playing in the latest round of the World Soccer Cup. Listen and say in which way the delivery of this sports report differs from or resembles the reading of the news items in task 2.1.

Task 3.2a. Now listen to the sports report again. This time follow the transcript. Mark the stresses and tunes, the tempo and pauses.

In Barcelona today, supporters clashed, when England played their World Cup match against Spain, the present cup holders. England had held the champions to one-one until half time, but soon after play was resumed a penalty was awarded against them. According to our reporter, Jim Bullock, the decision caused uproar among the group of England fans, and this in turn triggered an angry response from some opposing supporters in an adjoining section of the stand.

The referee stopped the game when violence spilled over onto the pitch, and there were several minutes of noisy confusion until local police restore order and escorted alleged ringleaders out of the stadium. Apparently there were other disturbances in pavement cafes and bars in town after the match. No one seems to have been injured seriously, either inside or outside the stadium. It is not known whether the police made any arrests. After order had been restored on the pitch, England attacked vigorously, but the Spanish defence was too well disciplined for them, and their hopes of appearing in the final were dashed when the opposition captain, Marcos, scored the winning goal, just thirty seconds before time.

Task 3.2b. Compare your notation with the graphic representation of the intonation of the same text suggested in “Practical English Phonetics” by E. Karnevskaya et al., p. 170. Make the necessary corrections. Then practice the text aloud.

Task 4.1a. Suppose now you are the journalist who was sent out to cover the match. You are telephoning your report back to your office. Your partner is at the other end of the line and has to key your report into a word processor or write it down as you read it. This is what you have written and have to read out:

Supporters clashed during the play in the World Cup match here today. England had held the champions to one-one until half time, but soon after play was resumed a penalty was awarded against them. The decision caused uproar among the group of England fans and this in turn provoked an angry response from some opposing supporters in an adjoining section of the stand.

Task 4.1b. Read out the passage (in 4.1a), remembering that you have to give your partner plenty of time to take it down.

Task 4.2. Now compare the way you have read with the reading on the cassette. While you listen, indicate the tones.

|| suPPOrters CLASHED || DURing PLAY || in the WORLD cup MATCH || here to DAY || ENG land || had HELD the CHAM pions || to ONE ONE || until half TIME || but SOON || after PLAY was re SUMED || a PE nalty || was aWARded a GAINST them || the de CI sion || caused UP roar || among a GROUP || of england FANS || and THIs in TURN || pro VOKED || an ANgry res PONSE || from some o PPO sing || su PPOR ters || in an adJOIning SEC tion ||of the STAND ||

Explain why one particular tone is used so frequently in this kind of reading aloud.

Task 5.1. Listen to these extracts from the dictated version (in task 4) and repeat them after the speaker.

1. || the deCIsion || caused UProar ||

2. || among a GROUP || of england FANS ||

3. || and THIs in TURN || proVOKED || an ANgry resPONSE ||

4. || from some oPPOsing || suPPORters ||

5. || IN an adjoining SECtion || of the STAND ||

Task 5.2. Now listen to how the second reader says this part of the news item and repeat each extract.

6. || the deCIsion caused Uproar ||

7. || among a GROUP of england FANS ||

8. || and this in TURN || triggered an ANgry resPONSE ||

9. || from some oPPOsing suPPORters ||

10.|| in an adJOIning SECtion || of the STAND ||

Task *6.1a. You are going to hear a radio announcer introduce the second installment of a serial. It is about the adventures of a former businesswoman, Penelope Wainwright, who has retired and now lives at the seaside. Say in which way the extralinguistic factors of reading this piece may differ from the reading of the sports report in task 3.2. Think whether the changes in extralinguistic factors will significantly modify the prosodic features of reading the introduction.

Task *6.1b. Listen to the announcer who reminds the listeners of what happened in the first installment and follow the transcript (T.6). Indicate graphically and then comment upon the prosodic characteristics of the piece.

Task *6.2. Work with a partner. Using the intonational marks, read the introduction of the installment of the serial to him/her. Let your partner comment upon the reading.

Task 7.1a. You will listen to a teacher at school introducing new material in a geometry class. Before you listen, comment upon the sphere of communication, the subject-matter of speaking and the social status of the participants.

Task 7.1b. Say what phonetic style this discourse is supposed to belong to due to its extralinguistic parameters. Make predictions as to the prosodic features of the teacher’s explanation.

Task 7.2a. Now listen to the teacher’s introduction of the new material in geometry. Are your predictions of the prosodic characteristics of the teacher’s speech right?

Task 7.2b. Listen again and read the transcript of the teacher’s speech. Mark the stresses, tones, pauses and tempo of speaking.

If you have a stereometrical figure – we call it F – and we want to move it from its original position in space, which we’ll call S into a different position which we’ll call S, then we can see that there are two ways in which we can do this. There are two cases.

The first case is that you can make this movement from S to S by means of a motion which we’ll call a translation, translation means a motion, and it means a motion which is parallel to itself.

Or it can be made by rotation, or it can be made by a helicoidal motion – helicoidal motion is a combination of a translation and a rotation. And in positions S and S the figure remains congruent with itself. You know what ‘congruent’ with itself means, don’t you?

Task 7.2c. Compare your notation with the one suggested in “Practical English Phonetics. Advanced Course” by E.Karnevskaya et al., p.336. Make the necessary corrections in your copy.

Task 7.3. Practise reading the introduction of the new material in geometry.

Task 7.4a. From your theory sheets on phonetic styles choose a passage for reading aloud. Do you think the reading of this text will differ from reading the introduction of the material in geometry? Why? In what ways do you think it will be different?

Mark the intonation of the passage you have chosen for reading aloud.

Task7.4b. Work with a partner. Let your partner comment on your reading. Make corrections if necessary.

Task 7.4c. Learn the passage on phonetic styles and introduce it in class. Let your groupmates express their opinion on how successful your presentation was.

Task 8.1a. You will hear the chairman of the Philosophical society making his opening remarks at a monthly meeting. The main business of the evening is to hear a talk or ‘paper’ presented by a visiting speaker. Before he introduces the visitor, the chairman has some announcements to make.

Listen to the chairman and note the language he uses. Consider the use of lexis and grammar. Explain why this kind of language is engaged.

Task 8.1b. Listen again andspeak about the phonetic peculiarities of the piece.

For example, you may have noticed that the chairperson hesitates quite a lot: there are pauses, repetitions and false starts. Think also of the tones, tempo, rhythm, loudness. Discuss with a partner these phonetic features and the reasons why they occur in the chairman’s speech.

Task 8.2a. Listen to the chairman’s opening remarks again and mark the intonation. Compare your notation with the one suggested in “Practical English Phonetics. Advanced Course” by E.Karnevskaya et al., p.344. Make the necessary corrections in your copy.

Task 8.2b. Now play the role of the chairman of thePhilosophical society and read his opening remarks at the meeting. Observe all phonostylistic peculiarities of his speech.

Task 8.3. Enact one of thefollowing situations using the appropriate language style:

1. You have to open a meeting of the English Speaking Club. You want to introduce the new members of the Club and also have the attenders acquainted with the points you are going to discuss at the meeting: e.g. organization of a round-table talk with English/American students arriving in Chernihiv; staging a performance etc.

2. You are the chairman of the Students’ Scientific Society. You open the first meeting and want to introduce the new members, inform the attenders about the changes that have occurred in the Society and discuss the problems of the coming scientific conference.

Task 9.1a. You are going to listen to an extract from a radio interview with Mr. Tom Williams who is asked to share his opinion about the way Britain’s transport system should be organized. Listen and say what Mr. Williams thinks about the use of private motor cars and the reasons for this.

Task 9.1b. Listen to the interview again and notice the intonation Mr. Tom Williams uses to explain his views. How can you account for the use of this intonation?

In which way is Tom Williams’ use of intonation similar to or different from the one used by the chairman of the Philosophical society (in task 8)? Give arguments to support your opinion.

Task 9.2. Listen to the interview with Mr. Tom Williams one more time. Write the whole interview down and then indicate all the stresses, tunes and pauses (both silent and filled). Practise the interview aloud imitating the speakers.

Task 9.3. Pair up with another student and enact the interview.

*Task 10.1. You will hear two extracts giving information on one and the same subject. Listen to the pieces and comment on the following points:

a) the topic and the purpose of the speeches;

b) the supposed participants of communication in each case;

c) the setting of speaking;

d) the type of the intonational style used in each speech;

e) difference in the use of the following characteristics: loudness, tempo, pausation, tones.

*Task 10.2a. Listen to both extracts again and take them down. Indicate the intonation of each piece.

*Task 10.2b. Work with one of your groupmates. Compare your intonationmarkswith the notation of your partner; make corrections if necessary. Then taking turns with your partner, practise reading the speeches aloud.

*Task 10.3. Perform the speeches in class. Let your fellow-students express their opinion on how successful your reading was.

Task 11.1. Below you will finda piece of prose.Read it silently to yourself to make sure that you understand each sentence. Then identify: a) what type of declamatory style it represents; b) who might read it aloud and where (in which setting); c) who the listener(s) may be. Also think of how this text differs from the famous fairy-tale and whether the difference may influence the expressive reading of the story.

Cinderella

There once lived a young woman named Cinderella, whose natural birth-mother had died when Cinderella was a child. A few years after, her father married a widow with two older daughters. Cinderella’s mother-of-step treated her very cruelly, and her sisters-of-step made her work very hard, as if she were their own personal unpaid labourer.

One day an invitation arrived at their house. The prince was celebrating his exploitation of the dispossessed and marginalized peasantry by throwing a fancy dress ball. Cinderella’s sisters-of-step were very excited to be invited to the palace. They began to plan the expensive clothes they would use to alter and enslave their natural body images to emulate an unrealistic standard of feminine beauty. It was especially unrealistic in their case, as they were differently visaged enough to stop a clock.) Her mother-of-step also planned to go to the ball, so Cinderella was working harder than a dog (an appropriate if unfortunately speciesist metaphor.).

When the day of the ball arrived, Cinderella helped her mother- and sisters-of-step into their ball gowns. A formidable task: it was like trying to force ten pounds of processed nonhuman animal carcasses into a five-pound skin. Next came immense cosmetic augmentation, which it would be best not to describe at all. As the evening fell, her mother- and sisters-of-step left Cinderella at home to finish her housework. Cinderella was sad, but she contented herself with her Holly Near records.

Task 11.2a. Read the story carefully again, sentence by sentence. Split up sentences into intonation groups, indicate the pauses. Then think of the intonation means that can make reading of this text expressive and mark the stresses and tunes.

Task 11.2b. Listen to the recorded version of the story and make corrections in your interpretation.

Task 11.2c. Practise reading each sentence of the corrected variant imitating the speaker in the recorded version.

Task 11.3. Read the text aloud in class. Let your groupmates decide whether your reading was expressive enough to be easily understood without reference to the printed version.

Task 12.1. You are going to listen to a poem called “Warning”. Below you will find the transcript of the verse. Read it carefully and do the tasks that follow the text.

Warning

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14